Plan for this year

MATT

Yearling... With promise
Hello,
I have a new 5 acre plot in west central MN that I am going to put in this year. The goal is to provide food and possibly cover for pheasants, and have a late season (Dec) attractor for deer.
The field has been in a wheat/soybean rotation that past number of years and is surrounded by 100s of acres of soybeans and corn.

Originally I was thinking of frost seeding some clover and then planting a Milo mix into that, but after some feedback, I'm thinking of changing course a bit.

My plan is now to:
- Plant an oat/wheat mix (other?) late April, as soon as the 14 day forecast shows no severe frost.
- Late June I'd throw, mow and spray a mix of Milo/Soybeans.
- Early Sept I'd try and over seed rye & radish, depending how thick things get.

Any feedback on this proposed plan?

Thanks,
 
Hello,
I have a new 5 acre plot in west central MN that I am going to put in this year. The goal is to provide food and possibly cover for pheasants, and have a late season (Dec) attractor for deer.
The field has been in a wheat/soybean rotation that past number of years and is surrounded by 100s of acres of soybeans and corn.

Originally I was thinking of frost seeding some clover and then planting a Milo mix into that, but after some feedback, I'm thinking of changing course a bit.

My plan is now to:
- Plant an oat/wheat mix (other?) late April, as soon as the 14 day forecast shows no severe frost.
- Late June I'd throw, mow and spray a mix of Milo/Soybeans.
- Early Sept I'd try and over seed rye & radish, depending how thick things get.

Any feedback on this proposed plan?

Thanks,
I would use greencover spring release the. Do fall release. Easy and see how it goes. Can then start doing custom mixes when you see how it grows.

Do a soil test and ammend before starting. Then can ease off fertilizer and lime as long as no till and diverse mixes.
 
It sounds goofy, but if your goal is food/cover for pheasants and food for deer I think 5 acres of corn would be the best. The yield on 5 acre of corn would far exceed any other options and it would provide cover as well.
 
It is hard to beat corn. If you dont have bear around you, I agree with Ben. If you have bear, 5 acres wont last long with them.
 
It is hard to beat corn. If you dont have bear around you, I agree with Ben. If you have bear, 5 acres wont last long with them.
Sounds like he was thinking of throw and mow. Corn doesn’t work well with that. Also it’s harsh on soil.

I agree, if going to do a traditional tillage plot hard to beat corn. If regenerative throw and mow a diverse mix like greencover way to go IMO.
 
Hello,
I have a new 5 acre plot in west central MN that I am going to put in this year. The goal is to provide food and possibly cover for pheasants, and have a late season (Dec) attractor for deer.
The field has been in a wheat/soybean rotation that past number of years and is surrounded by 100s of acres of soybeans and corn.

Originally I was thinking of frost seeding some clover and then planting a Milo mix into that, but after some feedback, I'm thinking of changing course a bit.

My plan is now to:
- Plant an oat/wheat mix (other?) late April, as soon as the 14 day forecast shows no severe frost.
- Late June I'd throw, mow and spray a mix of Milo/Soybeans.
- Early Sept I'd try and over seed rye & radish, depending how thick things get.

Any feedback on this proposed plan?

Thanks,
Central MN. So zone 4ish?

Think late June is too late for Milo to get decent seed heads. Maybe you can try to find shortest maturity possible but stuff I get locally in zone 4 takes awhile to put on seed heads.

Why the radish early Sep? Ok with just leaf/top growth and not super tall at that? Sure it survives light frost decent but that does not mean it is growing gang busters after that

Plans is ok, timing seems later than what I have done in past
 
Can’t comment on pheasant and I haven’t tried milo, but if you do get the beans going, and if you do get the greens going, and if the neighbors take the crops off, at least for deer seems you would be in real good shape. I’m in 5b/6a here and if it were much cooler might even start looking for the first available rains late august for the overseed… also I mix in some wheat and oats in my grains (I broadcast the brassicas radishes etc a few weeks earlier if I can) just because pure rye gives me almost too much biomass to roll down the next spring / summer. As mentioned though, not sure how much growth you’d get on radishes planting that late but as long as the beans and grains are in place it wouldn’t matter much anyway.
 
The milo you can't plant too thick and everything eats it from coons to songbirds.Deer will eat mostly when green doughy stage.I always plant mine a couple weeks after ag milo.I wonder by planting the wheat almost 6 months late what it will do.I figure it will just get tall and may not head out.I plant Real World beans and then broadcast wheat in oct or so.I have planted regular ag beans that we plant in field right next to plot but if you leave these ag beans they shatter bad compared to the RW beans that I have had stay good through dec.
 
The milo you can't plant too thick and everything eats it from coons to songbirds.Deer will eat mostly when green doughy stage.I always plant mine a couple weeks after ag milo.I wonder by planting the wheat almost 6 months late what it will do.I figure it will just get tall and may not head out.I plant Real World beans and then broadcast wheat in oct or so.I have planted regular ag beans that we plant in field right next to plot but if you leave these ag beans they shatter bad compared to the RW beans that I have had stay good through dec.
I’ve had totally the opposite result with Milo. It is very easy to plant it too thick. Get poor growth and poor head production when too thick.
 
Hello,
I have a new 5 acre plot in west central MN that I am going to put in this year. The goal is to provide food and possibly cover for pheasants, and have a late season (Dec) attractor for deer.
The field has been in a wheat/soybean rotation that past number of years and is surrounded by 100s of acres of soybeans and corn.

Originally I was thinking of frost seeding some clover and then planting a Milo mix into that, but after some feedback, I'm thinking of changing course a bit.

My plan is now to:
- Plant an oat/wheat mix (other?) late April, as soon as the 14 day forecast shows no severe frost.
Maybe add a quick growing legume to this as well? Fixation balansa or crimson clover, peas? Don higgins is pushing real world's soil charge now that has barley, peas, and clover in it and saying you can frost seed it.
- Late June I'd throw, mow and spray a mix of Milo/Soybeans.
Not experienced with Milo. Not sure how well soybeans would take in a throw an mow application, i'm sure some would grow but might be pretty sparse? I've not done spring grains but i'd want someone more experienced to weigh in on how spring planted oats/wheat that's mowed in late june might still be healthy and outcompeting with the thrown milo/soybean seeds unless you're spraying it.
- Early Sept I'd try and over seed rye & radish, depending how thick things get.
Would try to get radish in by early August if you want any notable tuber development. I like broadcasting rye over everything in early sept though to fill in any voids, make sure there's always food (when not snow covered) and set you up for success in the spring.
 
Yes by that I meant you can't plant too thick not that it good to plant too thick
 
I see. Makes sense.
 
Thanks for all the input so far.
A few additional notes:
No bears around.
I'd love to have corn but this ground just doesn't support it, thus why it's always been in a wheat and soybean rotation.

The thought with planting a cereal grain is to get something growing as soon as possible to help scavenge any remaining nutrients in the soil in addition to creating some thatch that I can easily throw, mow and spay into. I'm hoping it can get a foot or taller by the time I want to plant my milo and soybean mix.

I do question if late June is too late for the milo/soybean mix, but it seems summers are lasting longer and longer. How late in zone 4B would you target for good seed heads on the milo? I'll probably plant a mix of ag milo and WGF.
I should add, i'm not married to the idea of soybeans. I could plant something elset, that compliments the milo, that would be a better fit in my scenario.

Thanks.
 
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It doesn’t support profitable yields of corn or doesn’t support corn at all? This is something I know nothing about and just curious.
 
It doesn’t support profitable yields of corn or doesn’t support corn at all? This is something I know nothing about and just curious.
From a farming standpoint, it wasn't profitable.
If I was dead set on it, I could probably get corn to grow but it'd take a lot of effort and money, plus some luck from mother nature.
Hoping to get the plot into a no-till, throw and mow rotation though, as I've got 3 other smaller food plots on the property that have been very successful with the Lick Creek mix.
 
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